Incheon City issued its first malaria alert of the year in Ganghwa-gun on the 17th, followed by a second alert in Yeonsu-gu on the 30th.
The city announced that the alert was issued due to the recent occurrence of two malaria cluster cases in Yeonsu-gu. A cluster case refers to when two patients in a malaria risk area develop symptoms within 14 days of each other and their residences are within 1 km of each other.
Earlier, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency issued a nationwide malaria advisory on the 18th of last month.
With the confirmation of cluster cases in Yeonsu-gu, the city plans to conduct on-site investigations including mosquito habitat surveys in patient occurrence areas, residence inspections, and identification of risk factors.
Additionally, vector control operations will be carried out in the patient occurrence areas, and publicity will be conducted through local medical and pharmacist associations, along with rapid diagnostic testing to enable early detection.
The number of malaria patients reported in Incheon was 46 in 2021, 63 in 2022, and 126 in 2023, with 27 cases reported as of last month this year. Malaria is transmitted through the bite of female Anopheles mosquitoes and, after an incubation period of 7 to 30 days, symptoms such as fever, chills, headache, muscle pain, vomiting, and diarrhea appear.
Rapid diagnostic tests can provide presumptive diagnosis within 15 minutes. The most common type of malaria in Korea, Plasmodium vivax (tertian malaria), can be completely cured with appropriate treatment, making early diagnosis and treatment very important.
An Incheon city official stated, "It is important to follow preventive measures to avoid mosquito bites during outdoor activities or outings in the vacation season," adding, "If you experience symptoms such as fever or chills, you should immediately visit a medical institution for testing."
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